The M.O. for new Chargers general manager Tom Telesco, here welcoming first-round draft pick D.J. Fluker, appears to be not to overthink things. DENIS POROY, AP

OK, let's get through the monologue.

•This way, D.J. Fluker can knock down Manti Te'o every day.

•Te'o was happy the Chargers drafted him because he's seen the pictures of the new San Diego stadium, on Facebook.

•The Chargers chose the Notre Dame linebacker because they weren't good enough to play for a championship last year. Of course, neither was Notre Dame.

Thanks, and please check out my HBO special next Saturday from the Laugh Stop ...

Now for some football news.

The Chargers' new management has been about as opaque as the Politburo, in terms of strategy and expectation.

The smoke began to clear in the first two rounds of the NFL draft.

Their approach? Don't overthink it.

Fluker, the sun-blocking right tackle, was a card-carrying member of Alabama's name-taking offensive line, the one that stomped its way to two consecutive BCS national championships.

Te'o was the most celebrated collegiate linebacker since maybe Brian Bosworth, and he finished second in Heisman Trophy balloting.

Then came January, when his professional and personal reputation came apart.

Te'o was largely invisible during Notre Dame's championship-game loss to Notre Dame. Then came the girlfriend and the catfishing and all the other post-holiday gifts to Letterman's joke writers.

It's important to balance the concepts here. The girlfriend was imaginary. Teo, as a legitimate football player, is not.

At Notre Dame he had 34 tackles behind the line of scrimmage, with 81/2 sacks. As a sophomore he piled up the most tackles of any Irish player in 27 years.

If someone came near Te'o with a football in his hand, he got popped. And, before last season, Te'o lost 15 pounds and began spreading his net far afield.

Still, he drifted. The Facebook incident didn't preoccupy NFL scouts, but they still had to ask questions. Beyond that, they felt Te'o was too slow to warrant first-round status, and his no-show against Alabama, the only SEC team he played, was hard to ignore.

But Chargers general manager Tom Telesco moved up seven picks – and, as it turned out, passed over USC receiver Robert Woods, West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith and Mississippi State cornerback Johnthan Banks, among others – to gather in Te'o. It was easily their highest-profile move since Telesco took over in February.

"We thought he was the most instinctive and productive linebacker in the draft," Telesco said. "He'll be an excellent fit in our 3-4 and he'll complement Donald Butler really well.

"He's passionate about the game. He loves to practice and he loves to play."

Telesco said the same about Fluker on Thursday night. Again, that was a by-the-book pick in which the Chargers ignored the prevailing winds and followed their board.

They were rumored to be interested in Chance Warmack, the Alabama guard, but Tennessee took him with the previous pick.

Fluker is from New Orleans originally, but Hurricane Katrina chased his family to Foley, Ala., where he ditched basketball to play defensive tackle. A visit to Alabama's summer camp put him on the other side of the ball, and Fluker signed to go to Tuscaloosa – where his apartment was wiped out by a killer tornado.

In the third round the Chargers continued to grip the wheel with both hands.

They needed a wide receiver, and the most productive man left was Keenan Allen, who was Cal's all-time receptions leader and led the Pac-12 in punt returns last year.

An indifferent 40-yard time did not dissuade Telesco, who was influenced heavily by Bill Polian in Indianapolis and knows football is not played in shorts.

The Chargers were not particularly active in free agency, except when they were letting yesterday's players walk out the door. They did sign running back Danny Woodhead, a solid producer in New England.

They seem to realize that the talent pool A.J. Smith once assembled has eroded decisively, and there have been no replacements for Kris Dielman, Steve Foley and Vincent Jackson. Fluker, Te'o and Allen might be a start.

Of course, Fluker is a right tackle, not a guard like Dielman. The Bolts weren't in position to snag a left tackle, so Philip Rivers remains in the danger zone. They did not become decrepit in one season, so they will not seal all the cracks in one offseason.

What they have is an improved but anonymous defense that needs a star. They have a frustrated quarterback who needs a tune-up. And they have an offense that gained more yards than Arizona – and no one else.

The Chargers are addressing all those problems empirically, based on what they can verify. They aren't just pressing the "like" button.

They're convinced Manti Te'o can play in space. Just not in cyberspace. ... Hey, thanks, you've been great, drive home safely.

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